There are a number of theories about the sexual health of history's most prominent political leaders. So what truth is there in the conjecture that these famous figures could have benefited from an STD test?

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 - 1821)

Long before a height-related inferiority complex was named after him, there's a good chance that Napoleon Bonaparte, military genius and Emperor of France (1804-1814), was carrying the burden of another physical complaint. As well as his short stature, it's likely that the great wartime tactician had to put up with a syphilitic infection in the later years of his life.

Records suggest he attempted to poison himself with arsenic during the exile following his defeat and fall from grace. Poisoning was also mooted as his eventual cause of death, although stomach cancer was another diagnosis. Because arsenic was the contemporary - if toxic - treatment for Syphilis, it is possible that because he was suffering from a venereal disease the arsenic was self-administered. Forensic tests of his hair made in 2001 suggest this is plausible.

How he came to catch the disease is open to speculation. This is before the time of the STD test and useful antibiotics, so it was only possible confirm such a diagnosis by recognising advanced symptoms. The diminutive French despot was legendary for his conquests of all kinds; certainly he fathered two illegitimate children, and perhaps more untold. Whether the infection he picked up compromised his much-fabled romance with Josephine, or his second Empress, Marie Louise of Austria, is unknown. His infection may well have spread as widely across Europe as his army did.

Winston Churchill & Adolf Hitler

With leaders of European troops in mind, might an STD test have revealed something about two great nemeses of the Second World War?

It has been documented the Winston Churchill's father, Lord Randolph, suffered from Syphilis. Once referred to as the 'father's sins visited upon the son', Syphilis can be transmitted down the generations, meaning Winston may have been a carrier. With innumerable and varied symptoms, the disease was historically a difficult one to identify, so is it irreverent to speculate that our hero's stroke may have been exacerbated by syphilitic damage to his brain?

The same ailment has also been attributed to Winston's adversary, Adolf Hitler, and it is much easier to unite this with our image of the Nazi leader. Power-crazed and reputedly mono-globular, it seems fitting - illuminating, even - to know that mental imbalance can result from Syphilis if it is left untreated for too long. Talk about making rash decisions. We could wryly suggest that in Hitler's case, an STD test might have explained more about his behaviour than a psychological assessment ever could.

Bill Clinton

Was his Herpes infection exposed by a smear test or by a smear campaign? It unlikely that anyone actually managed to gain access to Bill Clinton's STD test results; what's more probable is that rumours about his sexual activity are so media-spun and prolific that they have come to be held as truth. Who can know for sure?

It is a pity that the President who came closest to brokering a peace in the Middle East should have earned a legacy that focuses on his personal transgressions and his alleged medical issues. But it emphasises the sad fact that when you sit at the head of a great military power, 'keeping your powder dry' and keeping 'clean as a whistle' are equally important as your decisions.